Tag Archives: Featured

The aisles of Baselworld have been deserted by many watchmakers, who consider the concept of the event to be outdated (© Keystone / Georgios Kefalas) As Baselworld continues to face difficulties, the Swiss watch-making industry needs a new platform to showcase its know-how. With watchmakers going it alone with separate initiatives, one industry expert is pushing for a more collaborative effort to keep the industry thriving. Up until recently, early springtime for...

Representative Sorrell has introduced House Bill 122, a tax-neutral measure to exclude from gross income any net capital gain and any net capital loss derived from the exchange of precious metals bullion. Policies that penalize savers in precious metals reduce the likelihood that Alabama citizens will take prudent steps to insulate themselves from the inflation and financial turmoil caused by the Federal Reserve. In recent years, legislation to remove capital gains...

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths continue to rise; the dollar continues to climb The January jobs data is the highlight for the week; Canada also reports jobs data The Fed submits its semiannual Monetary Policy Report to Congress today; Mexico and Brazil report January inflation data The downdraft in eurozone industrial data continues; Russia cut rates 25 bp to 6.0% and signaled more easing ahead RBA upbeat but Governor Lowe warns of “significant...

Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.07% to 1.0692 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, February 7(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: makets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: A more cautious tone is evident today in the markets, which seem to have run well ahead of macro developments and evidence that the new coronavirus is not yet contained. After a roughly 3.5% advance in the past three sessions, the MSCI Asia Pacific index pulled back with nearly the...

Where to now for Thiam? (© Keystone / Ennio Leanza) Credit Suisse chief executive Tidjane Thiam has resigned from his post following a highly damaging spying scandal that has rocked Switzerland’s second largest bank. Thiam’s departure is nevertheless a surprise as most media expected chairman Urs Rohner to depart. Thiam will leave the bank on February 14 when he will be replaced by Thomas Gottstein, who is currently CEO of Credit Suisse’s Swiss operations. The news...

USD/CHF trades with a positive bias for the fourth consecutive session. The 0.9700 mark might now act as a strong base for bullish traders. The USD/CHF pair edged higher for the fourth consecutive session on Thursday and is currently placed near one-week tops, levels just below mid-0.9700s. Any subsequent positive move is likely to confront stiff resistance near the 0.9765-70 region (testing twice in January) and kept a lid on any further gains. The mentioned barrier...

USD/CHF edges higher for the fourth consecutive session on Thursday. The risk-on mood weighed on the safe-haven CHF and remained supportive. A pullback in the US bond yields kept a lid on the USD and capped gains. The USD/CHF pair now seems to have entered a bullish consolidation phase and was seen oscillating in a narrow trading band near one-week tops, just below mid-0.9700s. The pair added to its positive momentum witnessed since the beginning of this week and...

Qatar and other Middle East nations have announced fintech strategies. (Keystone / Yoan Valat) Swiss fintech company Instimatch has launched into the Middle East, having won a licence to operate in Qatar, and signed up its first Kuwaiti bank. The mineral and cash-rich region is proving a magnet for financial innovation from Switzerland. Instimatchexternal link’s digital platform directly connects deep-pocketed corporate, financial and municipal lenders with global...

Will we wonder, what were we thinking? and marvel anew at the madness of crowds? When we look back on this moment from the vantage of history, what will we think? Will we think how obvious it was that the coronavirus deaths in China were in the tens of thousands rather than the hundreds claimed by authorities? Will we think how obvious it was that the virus would spread around the globe, wreaking havoc on the global economy and social order, even as the authorities...

by Randall W. Forsyth via Barron’s ◆ With no opportunity cost to holding a zero-yield asset such as gold, investors increasingly are adding it to their portfolios as a hedge. ◆ Gold retains its intrinsic value, something no paper currency has managed to do over history. ◆ Gold is insurance. Insurance isn’t supposed to make you rich; it’s supposed to keep you from being poor. The best thing to happen is your insurance never pays off because nothing bad happens. ◆...